About 241 Australian citizens and permanent residents are in isolation in the Indian Ocean territory after being evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan.

They are being kept at its immigration detention facility, which is located well away from the main population centre.

There have been no confirmed cases of coronavirus infection among the evacuees and authorities say there is no risk of residents being exposed.

But Christmas Island Shire president Gordon Thomson fears tourists will be deterred from visiting the island, which had started to attract more holiday-makers after the majority of detainees were transferred to mainland facilities.

"I've noticed some idiotic comments from some people in the tourism industry on Christmas Island who seem to think it's a good idea and that people in quarantine are going to think it's a wonderful place and want to come back as tourists," Mr Thomson told AAP.

"The world is looking at Christmas Island where people are incarcerated for potentially having a communicable disease.

"It's an extraordinary event and a hysterical response.

"It's obviously ruinous to the tourism industry. People are cancelling bookings, I know that, and raising their eyebrows when (residents) say they're going back to Christmas Island."

Christmas Island Tourism development manager Philip Tubb said Mr Thomson's comments were unhelpful.

"No one in this organisation is of the opinion that what is going on is a great thing for tourism; in fact, it's quite the opposite," he said.

"We're in a sense, like many people, victims of a pretty awful situation in terms of reputational damage.

"But by the same token, this is a worldwide issue and people are dying. I think it needs to be kept in context as well."

A further 35 Australian evacuees from Wuhan will soon be transferred from Auckland to the tiny island off the northwest coast of Western Australia.

They will join the other evacuees in quarantine for up to 14 days.

Mr Thomson said Serco workers had been excluded from the detention centre and moved to a separate facility at Phosphate Hill.

"The whole facility is staffed by people brought from the mainland as we understand it, it's military people and the AUSMAT (medical assistance) team," he said.

Some Christmas Island tourism operators meanwhile urged visitors to shine a positive light on the situation.

"Just like with the (detention centre), the massively distorted NEGATIVE PUBLICITY from this overshadows the fact that Christmas Island is the Galapagos of Australia," the operators of luxury eco-resort Swell Lodge posted on Facebook.

Australian Associated Press